Werewolf movies of a decent quality are seriously under-represented in the horror genre.

While clascs like The Howling and An American Werewolf in London are first named when the subject comes to mind, there is rarely anything mentioned following those two titles, save perhaps the Ginger Snaps series and Dog Soldiers.

When it became apparent that Wes Craven was set to direct a new werewolf film, hopes were high.

Unfortunately, once Cursed hit theaters, it became all too clear that fans would still have to wait for a quality film

The star power on this film is not surpring, given the resurgence of popularity in horror films. Craven directs another Kevin Williamson script, with Christina Ricci in a starring role and supporting roles by Joshua Jackson - a throwback to Williamson's Dawson's Creek, Portia di Ros and a wide cast, including an inexplicable yet highly amung cameo by Scott Baio - as himself.

Ricci's character and younger brother Jimmy (Jesse Eisenberg) find themselves infected by a werewolf bite following a car accident on the requite deserted road and seem to accept this as the explanation of a newfound sense of power all too quickly.

This is only the first in a steady stream of bad editing -- which is no surprise given the film's long and arduous journey in getting to print.

Hitting the cutting room floor along with a good deal of gore that warranted the film's original R-rating (edited to PG-13 in an effort, it would seem, to market towards a younger crowd) were roles meant for 90’s slasher film veterans Skeet Ulrich and Freddie Prinze Jr.

Continuity errors ade, the film progresses quickly.

Viewers learn that Ellie and Jimmy's parents are dead, leading to a certain amount of sentimentality in regards to a ster / brother relationship that is all that is left for the two in terms of family.

The horror genre itself suffers a blow from changing technology when Jimmy identifies their new lycanthropic nature by way of a webte and not the usual creepy old psychic or funky ancient book, but given the modern edge to the film it works fine.

A good deal of the film is, in a word, useless.

There are no surprises here; each of the two blings deal with their changing bodies in their own ways. Elli reacts with horror, while Jimmy uses new strength to his advantage in thwarting a high school bully (Milo Ventimiglia).

The levity injected into the film at this point, in which weakling Jimmy tosses school wrestlers about like rag dolls, is a much needed break from the monotony of the film to this point.

The main problem with this film, apart from the obvious hack and slash editing job, is the lack of innovation.

Take away the famous faces and you have a typical direct to video werewolf release.

While Craven's tongue in cheek style becomes evident from a plot specific night club that recreates famous horror scenes - including a few ghosts from Craven's own past - there is still not enough to let this film stand out from the pack.

Cursed follows a formula that can be likened to 1997s An American Werewolf in Paris. Character bittenCharacter denies that they are a werewolfCharacter comes to termsCharacter needs to kill werewolf that bit themCharacter kills wrong werewolfCharacter kills right werewolf

The cast itself might have been enough of a draw if they had been used to any degree of their talent, but a lukewarm script and disjointed editing have even taken the shine off of Christina Ricci, who is well known for her ability to take her roles quite dark and yet here was left a whimpering dishrag for the majority of the film. The only real notable performance was Jesse Eisenberg’s amung turn as geekling turned wolfboy Jimmy who manages an at least passable performance with the sadly humdrum script afforded him.

Overall, the film had great posbility but was dampened by a lack of originality.

While the editing issues only made it worse, the greatest damage comes from the limited innovation to the genre.

The movie isn't the worst out there, but it is definitely not the best, and not even star power can redeem it.

Werewolf fans will just have to keep waiting.

dew
Saturday 2/25/2012 at 02:17 AM | 90800

I actually really like this movie. Yeah, it's bad, like really bad but it's really entertaining. It's pretty fast paced and has some good moments. It's one of my "so bad it's good movies."

Ryze
Sunday 2/26/2012 at 04:11 AM | 90816

I kind of liked this one too.

I do agree that they could have given Christina more to do than just whimper and the werewolf transformation goes to show that cgi can't replace good puppetry though.

Jese was a great addition to this film and I did like Joshua Jackson quite a bit.

JohnCarpenterfan
Sunday 2/26/2012 at 05:16 AM | 90817

I wish I had seen more of Joshua Jackson as the "bad guy". And yes, Christina Ricci was extremely underutilized. I just couldn't get into this movie. It was bland and formulaic to me.

dew
Sunday 2/26/2012 at 05:54 AM | 90818

This movie disappointed the hell outta me. I couldn't believe how kid-friendly they made it. Maybe all the stuff that was cut out could redeem it somewhat, but I guess we'll never know now.

And it's true, there aren't enough quality werewolf films. What's up with that?